Claire Finneran

Summer 2024 update: Summer and cold lagers with your best mates in sunny beer gardens just go hand-in-hand – we don't make the rules. Whether you’re after a mid-week feed, a trivia night, live music or air con, Sydney’s best pubs are sure to set the stage for good times. Below, you’ll find the ones that are well worth their salt. There's a lot that goes into making a great pub. They need to furnish you with an excellent meal and friendly service, and a game of pool or darts doesn't go astray. On a sunny day, it's all about having a welcoming beer garden, and on a Sunday, it's all about a cracking roast. There are a lot of rock-solid pubs in this city, and these are our picks of the bunch, pulled together by Time Out Sydney critics including Food & Drink Editor Avril Treasure. Cheers! Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. For something a bit less pubby, a bit higher end, see our picks of the best bars in Sydney. Hungry? Check out our ultimate guide to Sydney's best restaurants. 

We're all about a secret underground dive bar or two – but in a city as beautiful as Sydney, it seems like a damn shame to retreat into the depths for every tipple. From a sundowner by the harbour to a sunny rooftop in the Inner West, our town is awash with sky-high watering holes. So we've rounded up the best spots in the city to sip a cold one under a gorgeous open sky. But drinkers beware: Sydney's rooftop bars play host to some of the most contested seats in the city, so get in early for a spot in the sun.  Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. For more al fresco drinking try one of Sydney's best beer gardens. Looking for another top-notch watering hole? Check out the best bars in Sydney.

The Emerald City is peppered with a whole host of stellar accommodation that each carry their own little slice of je ne sais quoi – making it difficult to whittle down a concise list of the best hotels in Sydney. Whether you’re in town for one night, want a longer stay, are flitting through for business, we have you covered with everything from five-star luxury rooms complete with views of the Opera House to boutique boltholes with rooftop pools.  Having earned our stripes reviewing hotels across the country, our team of writers (including Lifestyle Writer Winnie Stubbs and Travel and News Editor Melissa Woodley) have shared their top picks for the best places to stay in Sydney – along with top tips on how to make the most of your stay. RECOMMENDED:Find the best glamping sites in NSWThe best camping near SydneyThe best budget hotels in SydneyThe best low-cost luxury hotels in Sydney Who makes the cut? While we might not stay in every hotel featured below, we've based our list on top reviews and amenities to find you the best stays. This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines.

Call us biased, but we reckon Australia is one of the most astonishing and varied places to explore on Earth. A sizeable place – (you know, continent-sized), it can be hard to know where to begin when it comes to working out how to tackle the Great Southern Land – but that's where we come in. From turquoise beaches with sugar white sand and ancient tropical rainforests, to flaming red deserts and buzzy metropolitan cities, we've picked out the most incredible places you should visit in Australia.  No matter who you are, or what you like, rest assured – there's something on this list for everyone.  🇦🇺 The 20 top tourist attractions in Australia🌈 Follow the rainbow to Australia's most colourful landmarks🌊 Australia's best beaches for sun, surf and sand

This tropical town in Far North Queensland is the perfect blend of laid-back and luxe. From seriously spectacular resorts with lagoon pool set-ups to casual fish and chip shops dotted along the main strip, it really offers the best of both worlds. Just an hour’s drive north of Cairns, Port Douglas serves as a gateway where two World Heritage-listed wonders meet. The town knows its best assets come plucked straight from its prehistoric origins, including the ancient Daintree Rainforest and the famous Great Barrier Reef. Port Douglas is so far north that the best time to escape here is actually in winter when the sun comes out to play and the rain and jellyfish stay away. If visiting means summer all year round, we can’t really say no, can we? Here are the best things to do in Port Douglas. RECOMMENDED: The best places to visit in Queensland.

Thinking of starting or adding to your collection of house plants? These plant shops, nurseries and foliage delivery services have everything you need, from on-trend indoor foliage and low-maintenance greenery to nourishing soil and pots that double as decoration. If you've got a case of the black thumb, the knowledgeable staff at these nurseries are your best resource for plant care know-how. Also, if you can't get out and about to buy them for yourself, we've found out which one of these do delivery so you don't have to.  Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, travel inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox.  RECOMMENDED: If you want to skip the gardening altogether and decorate with blooms, check out the best flower delivery services in Sydney. If this has got you in the mood for plant exploration in the wild, check out the best public gardens in and around Sydney.

The paramount rule in any spooky situation is to not be the denier. The jock who says, “ghosts aren’t real” is always the first one to get throttled by an angry apparition. So with open minds and willing spirits, we invite you to explore Sydney’s most haunted sites. These former insane asylums, abandoned roads, converted gaols and chilly tunnels may not appear to be the stuff of nightmares in the sensical light of day, but one too many shadowy coincidences coupled with gruesome histories have inspired us to get our ghost-hunting gear together and investigate.Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, travel inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. RECOMMENDED: If you want some wraith-watching advice from a pro, check out these spine-tingling ghost tours operating in Sydney. If you need a moment of reprieve from the manic hunt, forget all these grisly tales while you get pampered at Sydney’s best spas. Want more spooky stuff? Check out how many of these classic Sydney landmarks used to be cemeteries.

Sydney can be a cold beast, but it can also be a big-hearted fluffy one. Running parallel to the clichés of suits and yachts are the pockets of the city where you can give some of your valuable time to those who need it most. Siphoning some of our spare moments into volunteering can be daunting, so our Sydney team (including Oz Harvest volunteer Melissa Woodley) had a look at few of the places keeping benevolence floating in our city at the moment and how you could get involved. RECOMMENDED:  Reward yourself with a day in the sun at Sydney's best beaches  Keep giving back while you get a little something for yourself at these op shops Shop to make your heart and the earth happy at these ethical stores in Sydney.

At the foothills of the dormant volcano Mount Canobolas lies the picture-perfect vineyards and rustic, Federation-era houses of Orange. The surrounding area's varying altitudes and cool climate make Orange the perfect home base for produce like hazelnuts, truffles, cherries, figs and, of course, wine. Drive through cherry blossoms, wattle trees and gold mine adjacent creeks (that still yield a nugget or two) to find some of Australia’s most interesting winemakers, a bevy of up-and-coming designers and artists, and a thriving, locally-focused food scene.  So pencil in some well-deserved annual leave and hit the road with our complete guide to charming Orange. It covers everything from the best time to visit to things to do in Orange and where to eat and drink, curated by Time Out’s Editors and fellow wine guzzlers. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. RECOMMENDED READS: Want to extend your wine tour of Australia? Check our guide to the Hunter Valley.  Feel like something coastal? Have a look out our guide to Narooma.

Look, it really isn’t a secret that we Aussies love a good pub. Whether you're tearing it up on the local dance floor on a Saturday night or downing pints with a hearty Sunday roast, pub culture has something for everyone, every day of the week. These venues see it all: post-work bevvies, celebration dinners, darts competitions and even Hollywood movie crews. Whether it’s a schooner or a glass of wine you’re after, in the city or the outback, we’ve got a list of the country’s grooviest pubs that are a welcome sight to tourists and locals alike. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Australia newsletter for more news, travel inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox.  Hungry? These are the best pies in Australia worth travelling for.

It’s hard out there in the big smoke. Rents are rising, and apparently putting all of your groceries through self-serve checkouts as ‘potatoes’ is stealing. From filling up on the cheapest fuel day to shopping second-hand and even donating your eggs/sperm, here are some legal and semi-honest ways to survive. In a thrifty state of mind? Here are all the best free things you can do in Sydney right now.

Snaking along the border of NSW and Victoria is one of our country's most precious wonders – the mighty Murray River. Dotted along this lush, red gum-fringed wonderland are historical landmarks, exceptional arts experiences and a blossoming culinary scene. Set off for a trip to the Murray region and you could be snoozing aboard an iconic paddlesteamer or watching the sunrise from a deep red cliff jutting out of the water. Sure, some of these experiences are technically in NSW but we're still proud to claim all the unique elements from this vibrant borderland (and waters) as must-dos. Think you know everything there is to see and do around The Murray? We've teamed up with Visit The Murray and Visit Victoria for their 'Stay close, go further' campaign to bring you a fresh guide to what makes the region stand out. Here are the things that drive visitors to return every year and experiences you too could be having with a roam of the region. 

Formerly known as the Information and Cultural Exchange (or ICE), this Parramatta-based institution changed its name to the Arts and Cultural Exchange (or ACE) in March 2022.  ACE has been working with Western Sydney communities through creative courses and events for decades. With a particular focus on screen and digital platforms, they develop projects that give voice to disadvantaged and minority groups, fostering cultural expression and social cohesion.

Biryani House is an essential Lakemba stop. Cooked in the style of Hyderabadi Muslims, this joint is your go-to for the popular meat and rice dish biryani. Tuck in to a mini mountain of mutton biryani and be rewarded with intoxicating clove and cardamom aromas twirling around tender lamb chunks and sticky saffron hued rice.

Lakemba is home to Australia’s largest mosque, and the site on which it stands has housed places of worship since the 1960s. Officially known as Imam Ali bin Abi Taleb Mosque, the intricate brickwork and towering palms envelope a stunning deep purple and gold carpeted interior. The Lebanese Muslim Association hosts regular tours for groups of ten or more and you need to book at least a week in advance, gathering nine friends is easy if you show them photos of the jaw-dropping azure lightwell.

There’s a reason why you’ll find a modest queue spilling out of this tiny shop front, Al Fayhaa Bakery is Lakemba’s pop-in stop for fresh manoush and zesty Lebanese pizzas. Get in early for $2 oregano flatbreads or gussy it up for the most divine of breakfasts with a rolled up package of warm halloumi and feta, juicy capsicum and tomato, just enough olives, and slaps of fresh mint.   

Chewy, fresh-out-of-the-oven bread can’t be beaten. In fact, at Afghan Sufra it is the shooting star, flying in and out of a giant mosaic oven at cosmic speeds. There’s also meat, of course, and the hunks of marinated lamb and chicken are freshly charred on charcoal to order and put to bed on the soft hot doonas of fresh Arabic bread.

Take home some hard-to-find snacks at Five Star Coffee and Nut Roaster. This grocer stocks their aisles with local and Middle Eastern imported products so you’re bound to nab a treat with a help-yourself olive bar, selections of fresh and packaged dates, bottles of rosewater and gigantic jars of pickles. They also have an in-house roaster so look out for big tubs of freshly crisped almonds and pistachios and try a locally blended bag of fresh coffee.

Many a cowboy boot-clad scallywag has entered Route 66 on the hunt for a perfectly aged Creedence tee or a frilly rockabilly dress. The once Surry Hills stalwart have recently swung upon their saloon doors in Newtown, ready to ply the vintage loving locals with all things Americana classic. Think bolero ties, 70s raglan-sleeve band shirts, retro sunnies and classic cut denim. You'll find all your  head to toe cowgirl, biker, summer of love fantasies under one roof at Route 66 on Enmore road.

This light-filled gallery and concept space is just off the Five Ways intersection in Paddington. Founded by Kitty Clark, Saint Cloche operates with a focus on elevating emerging artists while also providing a sleek space for the mid-career movers and makers of Sydney. The gallery's exhibitions change over on a fortnightly basis, showcasing artists who work in painting, photography, textiles, ceramics, and objet d’art. Clark switched careers four years ago from the corporate fashion space to the art world. Her endeavours to connect younger artists with collectors in an approachable and accessible way form the backbone of Saint Cloche's concept. The space is bright and airy with modern touches that differentiate it from the white cube models of the commercial gallery world. There's even a coffee machine for visitors who find themselves drawn into whatever the exhibition is that week from the street.

This tiny pocket of a nursery shows that size doesn't matter when it comes to quality. Newtown Garden Market embrace their truncated size and even proudly display the tagline "little oasis in a big city" on their website to prove it. Smaller is better in this instance because the plant display here gets a more overgrown and lush quality, like shopping in a pocket jungle. There are plants over your head, plants below you, and plants joyfully popping out of the walls at you compelling you to take them home. Newtown Garden Market's size also means they have exceptionally prsonable service. You have an awkward fern question but you don't want to be laughed out of Bunnings?Go here. They'll gladly help and give you some top quality purchase recommedations while they're at it. You'll also be right at home if you're a dog lover, they bring their pooches to work. And of course, there's more in store than just plants, this nursery has a cute and eclectic garden accessories selection as well.     

This cute block of greenery in the tiny urban village of Annandale has been supplying locals with plant smarts and goods since 1980. Head to this garden centre for a huge range of indoor and outdoor plants and a variety of endangered and rare species from around the country. They were also recently featured on a Catalyst episode about the importance of bees, so you know they know their stuff.

Crowbar has settled in the former Bald Face Stag pub site and painted it both literally and figuratively black. Utilising the huge bar-adjacent band room they're specialising in live punk, hardcore, metal, and the heavier side of rock. It's still a pub at heart though, with tap beers, an in-house plant based bistro called Murdereats and a dog-friendly garden to enjoy a pre-gig schooner in.  

Wild food expert Oliver Brown says, “Experiencing the beach isn’t just swimming between the flags and eating a Calippo on the way home.” Brown is one half of the duo behind the Seaside Foraging Tour in Clovelly, facilitated largely by the very entertaining Diego Bonetto – a professional forager and edible weeds activist. The tour shows you that buying a Calippo from a beachside kiosk is a waste of cash as seaside snacks are growing in the surf fringes, lawns and rock platforms right where you swim. The workshop’s aim is to gift you with the knowledge to identify medicinal and edible plants growing all around us. You’ve been sitting on a patch of Warrigal greens this whole time! You can eat dandelions! You just need to know where to look. We’re led around Gordons Bay to the Shark Point rock platform on the northern end of Clovelly. Diego and Oliver collect as we go and at regular intervals give comprehensive information about the goods they’ve picked up along the way. The group is a comfortable size so questions don’t feel overwhelming or distracting, and everyone joins in on the trading of information, people scribble wildly to retain as much as possible. We taste everything as we go, from tangy rock samphire to lemony dock leaves and freshly plucked urchin gonads – with an invigorating side of rockpool-fresh sea lettuce and garlic-preserved turban snail. Delicious! Find more tours in Sydney. 

Few smug Instagram posts are greater than pics of a whole thing you have made yourself. I'm not talking about shots of your dinner (what is this? Lockdown one?). I'm talking more in the "here's an elegantly-whittled wooden children's toy I have done in the wee hours with a rustic blade" league. I'm talking specifically about this whole sartorially-relevant-ass jumper I just finished knitting from Cardigang.  Cardigang is the brainchild of two Melburnian women, Cat and Morgan, who were on the hunt for something to occupy them during the dark winter of Melbourne's first lockdown. They turned their beginner knitting skills into winner skills with the help of YouTube and sought to demystify complicated patterns to a new generation. And demystify they did. Cardigang sends out everything you need to make a range of ultra-colourful, ridiculously fun-looking jumpers with easy-to-understand instructions.  Photograph: Supplied/Cardigang If, like me, you learned the absolute bare minimum of knitting from your granny, you'll be delighted by these Knit Kits. The Cardigang instruction booklet is made of hardy cardboard and has very accessibly-phrased instructions for every step of the way. They've thrown out the Wingdings-like symbols of your classic knitting book and have a series of simple bubbles for you to track your progress. And, if you're starting to feel overwhelmed at any point, there's a QR code on your booklet that takes you to some very calm and informative how-to videos the Ca

As much as we pride ourselves on knowing every single bar, coffee shop, and swimming spot in town, there are still some things about Sydney that baffle us to this day. Here are some things we’ve all Googled at least once... 1. “why no train to bondi” Great question, if in fact this was meant as a question. You can get to Bondi Junction, but otherwise the city's East is quite sparsely connected by train lines. Pray for the tourist who hops off at Bondi Junction in swimmers. 2. "buy new opal card where" According to the Transport NSW site, Opal card sellers are rampant in this city (did this map lick the face of a kid with chicken pox on the playground to get out of school? Because same), but they're seemingly never around when you need one. A follow up question is: Why don’t they just sell them in vending machines at the bloody train stations? On the plus side, you can just use your credit or debit card to tap on and off Sydney trains instead. 3. "buy alcohol after 10pm where" Don’t cave to Melbourne’s propaganda campaign against us, you can still buy booze Monday to Saturday in NSW until 11pm. Sure, you might want a gallon of savvy b to cry into on your lounge at exactly 11.15pm, but you can still go to a bar. Contrary to popular belief, a lot of venues trade until 5am. If all else fails, cry onto the craps table at the Star for eternity. 4. "eat fish sydney harbour safe????" Many people wet a line along the fringes of the harbour, there’s quite the line-up of potential catch

Summer festival season is all about enjoying yourself outdoors and letting loose with your mates. Here’s how to do it without being a knob. 1. Be a person of substance Drugs and alcohol are the sustenance of choice at music festivals, let’s be honest. But, use your noggin when attempting to guzzle either in a public forum. Research your legal rights up the wazoo before you enter festival season, police and sniffer dogs are always present and never not-watching, and there are a lot of ways you can avoid being harangued without breaking the law. And, of course, drug-related deaths at festivals are real and you should exercise utmost care for yourself and those around you. Don’t be afraid to go to a medical tent if you have to and be honest, they’re there to help you – not to dob on you. Being responsible is easy if you binge on Brown Cardigan videos before you get festival festy: the cautionary AV library of our time is perfect for demonstrating what you actually look like when, say, you’re vertically flapping around in the mud or drunkenly mashing an ice cream into your face. Remember, everyone’s phone has a camera on it.   "Yeeeeah we're da mud boiz, mud boys 5evaaa"   2. Stress about your dress   For many, music festivals are the perfect opportunity to wear something wacky and ostentatious. Fine. What isn’t fine, in this year of our lord 2018, is wearing traditional costuming from a culture that isn’t yours. First Nations people have been politely pleading with you to no

If you asked musical duo Megan Mullally and Stephanie Hunt to lock their band Nancy and Beth’s theatrical style into a genre they’d have as hard a time as any. “It’s like Pilates class gone wild,” Mullally offers about their tight and surprisingly acrobatic choreography on stage. And it is. Experiencing a Nancy and Beth show is as much about admiring physical feats as it is appreciating the music. The pair will flip over chairs while singing one minute and shimmy into a coordinated cane number the next. “I’ve learned from the best,” Hunt says of their choreographic process. “Megan has some of the best body control in the world in my opinion.” Fans who know Mullally from her role as Karen in Will and Grace might be a touch surprised to learn that she does all the choreography for Nancy and Beth herself, but her background includes years in a ballet company and many roles in Broadway musicals. “My favourite compliment that we got recently,” Mullally says, “is from when a big Broadway guy came to see us play and he said I have the best core in the business. I was so excited about that.” Admirable cores aside, the pair are musically in sync, both on stage and off. Meeting on the set of indie flick Somebody Up There Likes Me in 2012, Hunt and Mullally would sing together for fun with Hunt’s ukulele between takes. “We instantly realised that there was something to the ease of our voices together and that that was something to be continued,” Hunt recalls. Growing up in a huge musica

If you asked musical duo Megan Mullally and Stephanie Hunt to lock their band Nancy and Beth’s theatrical style into a genre they’d have as hard a time as any. “It’s like Pilates class gone wild,” Mullally offers about their tight and surprisingly acrobatic choreography on stage. And it is. Experiencing a Nancy and Beth show is as much about admiring physical feats as it is appreciating the music. The pair will flip over chairs while singing one minute and shimmy into a coordinated cane number the next. “I’ve learned from the best,” Hunt says of their choreographic process. “Megan has some of the best body control in the world in my opinion.” Fans who know Mullally from her role as Karen in Will and Grace might be a touch surprised to learn that she does all the choreography for Nancy and Beth herself, but her background includes years in a ballet company and many roles in Broadway musicals. “My favourite compliment that we got recently,” Mullally says, “is from when a big Broadway guy came to see us play and he said I have the best core in the business. I was so excited about that.” Admirable cores aside, the pair are musically in sync, both on stage and off. Meeting on the set of indie flick Somebody Up There Likes Me in 2012, Hunt and Mullally would sing together for fun with Hunt’s ukulele between takes. “We instantly realised that there was something to the ease of our voices together and that that was something to be continued,” Hunt recalls. Growing up in a huge musi

Born in New York City in the ’60s, ball culture is being lovingly reared in Sydney thanks to the nurturing powers of multi-disciplinary artist and mother of the House of Slé, Bhenji Ra. “I came across voguing very, very innocently, and I say that because I had no idea what voguing was,” says Bhenji, who received a scholarship to study at Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance in New York aged 18. “It wasn’t until I got back to Australia that someone showed me Paris Is Burning that I was like ‘OMG I know these people.’” For many in Australia, the 1990 documentary is their access point to the thriving underground subculture of people of colour (POC) in the queer, LGBTQIA, gender non-conforming and trans communities of New York City that popularised the competitive art of walking, posing, and acrobatic dance. When Bhenji returned, she started to share what she’d learnt. “In New York I felt like I had a really strong community of queer POC. And I had never had that before. Growing up in a lot of different communities – the Filipino community and queer community – they have really nurtured me and molded me into the artist I am now.” Bhenji’s active ballroom competition family – the House of Slé – comprises mostly queer and trans Asia-Pacific young people from the Western Suburbs. “We realised we can perform at community events but we can also perform at galleries. It was really empowering for us to be in these institutions of value but also perform in clubs. “I slowly became

Prepare for your local Priceline to run out of hairspray, classic goth-pop band the Cure are bringing their sensory melodies and voluminous hair to Sydney. The band will be darkening the sails of the Opera House with their presence (not literally... we think) as part of Vivid Live, celebrating the 30th anniversary of their seminal album Disintegration by playing it live in its entirety. Over four nights in May, Robert Smith and the full band will perform both the full suite of Disintegration tracks alongside hits from their extensive back catalogue. Lauded by fans and critics as a melancholic masterpiece, Disintegration, their eighth album, rode the new wave swells of the '80s into the dream-pop shores of the early '90s, with songs 'Pictures of You', 'Lullaby', and 'Lovesong' informing the period's rock sound. The show promises to deliver a night to experience this influential album in the flesh with the added treat of some of the Cure's many hits from their '70s-to-present-spanning career thrown in.  As with Vivid Live's past big-name shows from Solange, Morissey, Kraftwerk, and Anohni, tickets will be released as a ballot. Anticipating high demand, the Sydney Opera House has set up an application process so that everyone has a fair chance at getting tickets. The ballot opens today and closes this weekend with successful applicants notified by Thursday February 28. So, if you ever stoically sucked in your tears to 'Boys Don't Cry' or sang along with your Dad to 'Just Like He

A few weeks ago the NSW government announced it would be opening the disused tunnels under St James Station to development opportunities. Seemingly unhappy with the current lot of buildings on the land, this move is a bold new frontier for our city's visionary overlords. Imagine Sydney, but underground! It's wild. Well before the deadline for expressions of interest closes on November 6, we let ourselves imagine this very far below ground future.  They're asking for ideas that could transform the platform and tunnels into a world-renowned attraction, and, listen, you can all give up now because these are those very ideas. Taking into account the tunnel's proximity to the famed subterranean lake under Hyde Park and our city's insatiable lust for paying for things to do we present you with 23 perfect ideas for our newest destination. 1. A bottomless, bottomless brunch at the bottom. Sydney loves something with the word “bottomless” in it because Sydney loves a gluttonous bargain. Sydney also loves not wearing pants and brunch, and the murky, dimly-lit lawlessness of the underground tunnels would make an ideal venue for shovelling endless food and drink into one’s top-half with an exposed lower-half. Only $970pp. 2. Sculpture by the Swamp. 3. A subterranean-themed escape room but you can’t actually escape, giving it the edge over its competitors. 4. The Everest Race numbers projected on every flat surface imaginable, even when the race isn’t running. Actually, especially when th

I went to my first ever AFL game the other day and I have a lot of thoughts about it.  It was the 'Sydney Swans' verses the 'Collingwood [insert animal]s' match. You know the one? No? Me either. It was pretty fun, but obviously so, so confusing to me. In spite of being from a family whose 82-year-old matriarch knows all the words to the Swans club song, I've never really gotten into this particular game. It's always looked a bit too elaborate for my NRL-comprehending brain. Rugby League is an allegory for war, right? A historical cosplay battle between geographical classes. Just me? Anyway, those human nuggets run in a straight line – at least it's easy to get. AFL on the other hand is an older sport, with more time to fancify and fortify rules and here are my observations as a relative 'outsider' who is nonetheless curious to know what all the fuss is about. If you're a massive fan you're probably going to get offended (stop reading, my entire family, please), if you've never seen a game before you're probably going to be more confused than when we started. Apologies to those wanting to be educated, I tried reading the Wikipedia page but my eyes glazed over. Check out the page for Marn Grook though, because that's heaps interesting. Anyway here goes.  1. When you arrive at the AFL the most striking thing is the shape of the bloody field. They call this ‘an oval’ and it is the most bullshit thing I have ever seen. The objective of a football game is to get the ball from one E

The Domain is about to get a workout once the balmy weather hits and we're not referring to the lunch-break soccer set. Announced today, Sydney Summer Series is a new suite of outdoor concerts that will liven up the parkland throughout January. Their first offering is a real doozy, with key players of Motown and disco history coming to play all of their glorious hits back to back on January 12. The first Summer Series line-up reads like the back of a legends of disco compilation record: Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, and Marlon are coming, performing all the Jacksons hits like ‘Can You Feel It’, ‘Blame It On The Boogie’, and 'Dance Machine', and hopefully delivered in matching sequin-lapel jackets. Gloriously cheesy party-starters Kool and the Gang will also be playing live, alongside the purveyors of irresistible hits 'I'm So Excited', 'Jump (For My Love)', and 'Automatic', the Pointer Sisters. Turning the Domain into an RSL on a Saturday night will be the Village People, YMCA-ing to your heart’s content, and absolute disco royalty Sister Sledge will be convincing everyone that ‘We Are Family’. Opening the whole soul shebang is Sounds of the Supremes, who’ll be celebrating the trio’s greatest tracks from the '60s and '70s. This is only the first of what Time Out has been told is a series of themed outdoor concerts happening throughout January – this iteration has nailed disco and Motown, so watch this space for more genre-based announcements. Tickets go on sale for the first Sydney

.... according to Grey Fisher, Taronga Zoo The birds are on performance enhancing diets"They live in flocks but they each get their own diets, because in any group you always have that one who eats a little more – like me with pizza at parties, I always eat more pizza than my fair share – so I want to make sure that doesn’t happen with these guys. They’re like athletes, if you’re underweight or overweight, you’re not gonna perform at your best."  Carnivorous birds, they’re just like us "Most of them eat mice, which the zoo breeds then culls, and freeze them and put them in bags. It’s kind of like a frozen dinner – all we have to do is thaw them out. And they also get day-old chicks, which are by products of the human food industry. Because they want hens for egg-laying and for meat, so they cull all the rooster chicks at a day old. We get chicks from that to feed to our birds and other animals. And we’ll use some quail as well, which also comes from the human food industry. Other than the mice, everything is human quality. Actually, the mice would be too if we ate mice, but we tend not to."  Be a considerate gardener – give little birds a flying chance "Everything we do has an impact on birds. Bird life in Sydney is changing drastically because of us, because of the things we choose to grow in our backyards. Local honeyeaters are fairly aggressive and so they’ll drive the smaller birds, wrens and finches, out. The best thing we can do is to make sure that when we’re planting

Bluesfest celebrates its 30th year with a roster of classic favourites and crowd-pleasing stars of the funk, blues, roots, country, and loosely-defined coastal chill pop genres. Notably, the three headliners are superstars of the festival, playing a huge part in its growing success over the years and essentially defining the sound Bluesfest would come to be known for. Jack Johnson, the Hawaiian singer-songwriter with an environmental message, is a returning fave of the festival, as are Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, who first charmed the field of punters in 1996. Both Johnson and Harper epitomise the vibe Bluesfest has perpetuated for 30 years, so it is fitting for them to return to the enthusiastic crowds who make a pilgrimage to Byron Bay every Easter. Also making their return is George Clinton and the ever-evolving Parliament Funkadelic. Clinton has announced that he will be retiring in 2019, stopping touring and performing from May next year. So, this is Australia's legitimate last chance to witness the joyful weirdness from seeing a P-funk show live. Taking place over the Easter long weekend in 2019, this year's festival will be settling into the lush grounds of the Tyagarah tea tree farm. With multiple stages, a variety of on-site accommodation options, food and market stalls and a landmark anniversary binding it all together it's bound to be a popular iteration of the festival. The line-up is also packed with other Australian and international gems. Kasey Chamb